


Happy

by Intheblackholeoffandoms



Category: Throne of Glass Series - Sarah J. Maas
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Arranged Marriage, Dancing, England (Country), F/M, Falling In Love, First Kiss, First Meetings, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Marriage, Marriage Proposal, Pregnancy, Princes & Princesses, Victorian
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-25
Updated: 2019-09-22
Packaged: 2019-11-05 17:48:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 5,570
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17923493
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Intheblackholeoffandoms/pseuds/Intheblackholeoffandoms
Summary: 16 year old  Lady Aelin Ashryver Galathynius dreams of life outside of studies, dancing and embroidery. She dreams of a life  like that of the girls in her favourite romance stories. She prays that her marriage  will not be aranged for her parents convenience.But when tradegy strikes her family,  can a handsome  prince bring her back from grief  and  give  her the life she  has always wanted?Throne  of Glass AU  set in Victorian Europe





	1. Bored

**Author's Note:**

> This is an AU I have beeen wanting to write for a while now. 
> 
> Please excuse an mistakes, I suck at typing 
> 
> All characters belong to the incredible Sarah J Maas

'Aelin'

The voice of my mother breaks me out of the daydream I had fallen into . My mother had been talking about some ball we were to attend at the house of Lord Arobynn Hammel-my one suitor who had a strange obsession with me - and I had decided that instead of listening to my mother I would dream about a handsome prince (like those in my romance books) who would come to take me far away to his kingdom.

'Now, Aelin ' my mother continues. 'At this ball Lord Hammel is highly likely to asked for your hand in marriage and you will accept' 

I blink at that. I am barely 16 and I did not want to marry an old man who only wants to marry me for my dowry, the fact that I am my father's heir (therefore on his death become duchess of Derbyshire) and, my beauty. I am famous in England for my beauty indeed when I visit my friend Princess Victoria in London it is always said that I will one day draw every suitor away from the princess. Instead of acknowledging my mother I get up , bob a polite curtsy at each of my parents and storm away to the Little Castle and my bedroom .

I pace around my room trying desperately to think of how to get out of this marriage. I don't want to marry a man more than twice my age whose first wife died in child birth. I want to be free. Right now I am not. My days are governed by my tutor who comes in the morning (I study languages and literature) before in the afternoon I must sit with my lady mother and sew. Then finally I can just sit in the library and read. But if I marry the Earl I know I will be like a prisoner and a trophy - shown off to all his friends saying look here , here is a beautiful girl, I own her. 

I go to my lessons but they are tedious. Aedion (my cousin ) join me for my lessons and I tell him about my parents plans. He is two years older than me and he is like my brother. Girls go mad for him. We are quite a striking pair to look at at. Golden hair, tall with blue eyes surrounded with gold- all of these indicating our Bavarian heritage. Our mothers were Bavarian and it is there that my mother’s heart lives. When I am safely married off she will return there. 

It is unfair. Aedion is very likely to get a say in who he marries. Unless I fall love I won't have a choice. And even then it is unlikely I can marry the man. 

At luncheon, I receive more shocks. Firstly my mother is with child. This news brings me great joy. She has lost two babies before their time and I pray that this child will survive. Secondly, Prince Rowan of Bavaria coming to stay with us as his mother the Queen is sick. 

I conjure up an image of Rowan  
I imagine that he is tall and devastatingly handsome. I imagine that we will fall in love and I will leave this boring life behind. 

Well a girl can dream can't she


	2. Humiliated

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A disastrous ball  
> A public proposal  
> A night of hell  
> And an embarassing first meeting. 
> 
> This really isn't Aelin's month

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 22/09/19 - finally editing!!!

I stand in front of the mirror and look at my dress for this evening. It is beautiful - black satin embroidered with flowers. But for all I look stunning in this dress my mood is anything but excited. Tonight we go to Arobynn Hammel's ball and I can feel it my bones that he will propose tonight. 

He was here last week and spent a long time with my father in his study. When they emerged they were both smiling and that night at dinner he payed closer attention to me than ever asking about my studies and my hobbies and my books before telling me about the grand library at his home and how it will be mine when I marry him. After dinner, I raged to Yrene (my maid) about how unfair it was and how embarrassed I would be when he asked me for my hand in marriage. 

If I do marry him, my mother will go to Bavaria as soon her child is born and she will return to her place in the royal court. Speaking of Bavaria, Prince Rowan along with his companion Chaol (pronounced Kale according to my mother )will be arriving within the week. He will stay in the room on the floor above me. I pray that he is kind. My only companion is Aedion - who is no fun- and occasionally Manon or Victoria -if she isn't in London.

Anyway, tonight I will be the centre of attention but for once I do not want to be. I love dancing and I love seeing the lords and ladies in their fine clothes; especially loving showing off but tonight I want to hide.

As I join my parents in the hall my mother looks at me and smiles. ' You look lovely my dear. You will outshine every girl in the ballroom tonight '. I say nothing just force a smile at her then follow her out the door. All the long journey to the Earl's house I sit silent, praying that the carriage breaks down, that he is ill and can't attend the ball, that either he or my parents change their minds about our marriage, that I can find someway, anyway to escape this. 

When we arrive, the ball is already in full swing. As we walk in the doors we are announced- Lord Rhoe and Lady Evalin , Duke and Duchess of Derbyshire and their daughter Lady Aelin. I see Arobynn smiling at us as we approach. I want to run, hide, be anywhere but here in this place where I could become a prisoner in just a few moments. 

He greets me with a kiss on the cheek. I try not to look as disgusted as I am before I turn to enter ballroom where many beautifully dressed couples in a myriad of colours are dancing a polka.. 

Not one minute after I enter the room a young man asks me to dance with him. I accept gleefully -the more time I spend dancing with other men the less time I have to spend with Arobynn. 

The night passes in a series of ever changing partners . Every man wishes to dance with the most beautiful girl in the room apparently.A Waltz is struck up and Arobynn leads me out onto the floor. He is a fine dancer but for the first time that night I do not enjoy a dance.

The dance finishes and I turn just for one second to look to see if I could find any girl I knew in the crowd. When I turn back , he on one knee in front of me. I am a little shocked, incredibly scared, and most of all embarrassed -every emotion apart from happiness hits me at that moment. 'Aelin' he says looking at me beseechingly 'Will you marry me?' Around us the other guests smile and laugh at this seemingly beautiful moment. 

I take deep breath as the room shrinks around me to me and him and the ring he holds. I search desperately for an escape route. 'Aelin?' he presses  
I pull my hand from his as I gasp out 'I'm sorry' . Then I run through the open french windows into the gardens. I find a secluded spot then sink to the floor, sobbing my frustration and humiliation into my hands. I had never let myself cry over him before but now it had changed. 

 

My mother finds me there. She says nothing just beckons me to follow and I can feel the anger radiating off her. We go to our carriage and my father's anger seems almost a living, breathing creature. We travel home in silence and I cry myself to sleep. 

In the morning I am calmer but still determined that I will never marry Arobynn Hammel. Breakfast is a silent meal but as it ends my father tells me to meet him in his study. I know that this will be a long and arduous talk. He speaks at length on the disappointment that I am to him, on the embarrassment I have caused the family. He is harsh and will not listen when I tell that this was never what I wanted. Life as a little English countess is not the life I have dreamed for my self and despite my dreams I had always known deep down that this could never be. I am a woman, with a title and the chance for a large dowry- a fine prize for any man. 

He dismisses me and I barely talk to my parents for the next 3 days. 

 

3 days later I am sitting in my French lesson when my mother enters and tells me to change my simple, worn dress as the Bavarian prince was arriving. I put on my new grey dress, forgetting that it is slightly too long. I hurry into the entrance hall just as he enters, tripping on the hem of dress.

Mortified that I fell over upon meeting this boy, I get up with two huge spots of colour on my face. My first thought is that he is incredibly handsome. My next thought is that he looks exactly as I imagined my handsome savior to be.

Maybe dreams really can come true.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So Rowan has arrived  
> What's in store for Aelin now? 
> 
>  
> 
> Thank you for reading - H


	3. Confused

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prince has arrived  
> He is everything Aelin imagined  
> Maybe he can't save her from this nightmare

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wil try my best to remove typing errors 
> 
>  
> 
> Thank you so much to everyone who is reading this book

'And you are'  
I blink at that. For all he is very easy on the eye and he has a lovely accent to his English , he speaks with such contempt. As if I am not worthy to be in his presence.  
'Lady Aelin Galathynius' I reply as frostily as possible 'I could ask the same of you'  
Just as the words leave my mouth , I hear my mother and father enter the entrance hall behind me. 'Really Aelin' she admonishes 'This is Prince Rowan Whitethorn, crown prince of Bavaria and his companion Lord Chaol Westfall'.  
In response I bob an almost mocking curtsy at the prince and smile at Chaol. They are shown to their rooms and I see nothing of them until dinner. 

At dinner Aedion is introduced to the guests and he immediately hits it off with the Prince while I explained to Chaol about how I spoke two languages fluently because my mother had taken it upon herself to ensure I was fluent in her native tongue and that I was very proficient in French as well as learning Spanish. We soon alighted on a shared interest: books. We conduct our conversation in German so that we can speak with ease. After dinner he walks me back to my room and I know I have found a new friend in the young Lord. He was a kindred spirit. Once my door is shut I turn to Yrene whose face is shining. 'They are both incredibly handsome, aren't they' she declares . But I can see that really she was talking about Chaol.   
'I suppose so ' I say. Then explain how the Prince seemed to hate me.

And so the weeks pass. Rowan does not get friendlier . If any thing he gets more inconvenienced by me as the month goes by. He and Aedion's favourite topic of conversation became how clumsy and apparently useless I can be. The feeling of being trapped grew and grew. In one moment of loneliness I almost wished that I had accepted Arobynn's hand. At least then I would have something to look forward to. Here I am surrounded by men, all of whom find me lacking in some way. Even my female companions are no help as they are either flirting (Yrene),ignoring me due to the embarrassment I have caused her (my mother) or just not with me (Manon and Victoria) 

When Manon arrives for a visit , I nearly cry with relief. Finally someone to talk to about everything. So I do, telling her about Rowan and his contempt, him and Aedion ganging up on me and the disastrous ball. She is shocked at the Earl's boldness and agrees with me that to marry a man like that would be to imprison ones self forever. She understood the want to wait for the right man. 

She is still staying at Bolsover when the Earl himself arrives. On seeing his arrival I attempt to hide knowing that my nightmare was about to resume. It’s not easy even though I know of a tiny space in the library in which I still just fit. But my mother finds me as the alcove was my favourite hiding spot as a child. 

I meet the earl in the huge courtyard. It feels almost safe there though I know this to be an illusion. It is open and people can see into it if their window is in the right place. Like Rowan’s is - it would be unlike him to save me if I needed it though. He asks me to marry him again. I refuse. What else can I do? I tell him I will never marry him and that even if he was the last man on earth I wouldn't marry him. I amaze him and myself with the anger and ferocity that I show. It is not ladylike.

He gets angry at that. He slaps me. It takes a second for me to register the pain. When I do and cry out, he just looks at me with a cruel smile. He hits me again and again while begging me to marry him. I continue to refuse. He really want my hand he was going the wrong way about it. 

Then all at once it stops. Rowan has wrestled him away from me. I lie on the ground, shaken and bruised. I am so confused. I thought Rowan hated me, yet here he is saving me. But I am so grateful for that, who knows what would have happened. Then another thought and emotion - anger; how could my parents have wanted me to marry a man such as this?

 

My father comes out the house. He looks from me, crouched on the floor crying, and then to Arobynn , who is fighting to free himself from Rowan's grip. His teeth bared. Manon and Yrene join us , there faces pale and drawn to help me inside.

My wounds are tended to. I sit and cry. I cannot think. I cannot speak. I am petrified. 

Rowan joins us. I look into his face and ask him 'Why did you help me ?'  
'Because I cannot tolerate a man mistreating a woman in the way he hurt you and I could not stand by and watch you suffer'  
He smiles encouragingly at me and in that moment you could not tell that just a day ago he had been insulting me. The smile makes him handsomer.  
I see the blossoms of friendship begin to bloom

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hopefully an errors have finally been corrected, sorry if there are still some.


	4. Content

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rowan saved Aelin.  
> Friendship blooms.  
> Will it lead to something more?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Typing errors will hopefully be reduced in this chapter 
> 
>  
> 
> Thank you for reading

‘I couldn’t stand by and watch you suffer’

Rowan’s words echo through my mind all through the long night that follows. I cannot sleep and my mind is in turmoil. Will he return? Will my parents try and convince me to marry him? Why did he hurt me, he apparently cares for me? I am so terrified of him that I can think of his name without crying. But in the midst of my sorrow and fear a question comes to me. Why oh why does Rowan care about my safety? 

I decide that the last question can be answered by Chaol. It is easy to find him as he and Yrene spend a lot of time together- something that would be frowned upon if this were a more traditional noble English household. There is an awful lot of flirting at these meetings. 

I find him and Yrene sitting in the library . She is mending one of my stockings and chatting to Chaol. I ask him whether he knows any reason Rowan saved me even though he seemed to dislike me. 'Rowan’s experience with women is his sister, whom he adores, and the girls at court who throw themselves at him' he tells me with a smile ‘To him, his sister is the most precious thing on this earth and he will do anything to protect her. I guess he saw not you in that moment but Kathryn and if that had been her, that man would be dead’ I take my leave, mulling over what Chaol had told me. So this is a young man devoted to his sister, who would(it seems) lay down his life for her. More than anything I want find out about this girl and - most importantly in this moment make friends with Rowan. It seems only right given that he stopped me being seriously injured and probably released me from hell.

He is in the schoolroom in the little castle ; a large well lit room which doubles as the personal library of the children. I love this room and to find Rowan sitting in my Reading chair, where I had spent so many happy hours. For a moment I have to just stand in the doorway considering him and my next words

I sit in front of him then say 'Can we start over? We did not meet in the best way. I was clumsy and rude and you just seemed so aloof'  
He smiles.'Of course.I was tired , hungry and annoyed after travelling for so long and it was a new land. Did you know that before then I had never once left the area around my kingdom. I am sorry for the misunderstanding but... ' he pauses, eyes twinkling 'You were very funny tripping over your dress' hem'

'Why did you help me yesterday?'  
'You were being hurt and I could hear the man begging you to marry him. I saw my sister and knew that if that had been her I would of helped and then I realized that even though I saw my sister I knew that if she found out I had left a girl in danger she would kill and I don't wish to be on my bad side, and so I saved you'

We spend hours in that little room talking and it morphs from a place of learning and solitude to one of conversation and happiness. He tells me about his sister, Kathryn, his parents and life as crown prince. when he has finished he looks at me expectantly. So I tell him about my life and the dirge that it has become.

 

Manon is surprised how quickly we become friends. 'I thought you hated each other'  
'It's complicated.' I tell her but deep down I am surprised myself. 

As weeks turn into months we become better and better friends. He begins to join me and Aedion for lessons. We compete between the three of us- obviously I am the best especially at languages. Life is suddenly not so dull. 

We spend what feels like hours talking some days when really it is only minutes.The sun has come out in my life again. 

 

Nothing more is said about marrying Arobynn .

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As I’m editing things are being added/removed form the text. Hopefully it’s making it easier to read


	5. Grieving

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A new chapter is about to begin  
> Nothing will ever be the same

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies (again) for any typing errors  
> I try my best 
> 
> Sorry for waiting so long to post new chapter. 
> 
> Thank you for reading

Months pass

The seasons change  
Mine and Rowan's friendship changes  
Rowan celebrates his birthday  
Yrene and Chaol fall in love 

Day to day life doesn't change much. Still I struggle through an endless cycle of lessons and embroidery and etiquette. But now there is Rowan by my side alleviating some of the boredom. In the afternoons , we sit and read or choose a language to speak in to test each other, conversing in that language only until we have to give up. Our conversations are about everything from very serious topics to silly little arguments and teasing - sometimes border on flirting. It becomes so easy to just joke with him and his smile when I do so lights up my day. 

Then everything changes. Two weeks before Christmas, not long before my mother's baby is due, my father falls ill, and is confined to bed. My grandmother (who had come from Bavaria to be beside my mother when her second grandchild is born) tells my mother to send me, Rowan , Aedion and Chaol to London to spend time with Victoria earlier than we were meant to go in order to give my parents space to breathe and my father time to recover before the child is born. My mother is terrified of her mother and would never disobey her. 

As we ride away from Bolsover I am a ball of nerves. What if my father dies? What if my mother gets ill as well ? What if she dies? What is going to happen to my new sibling? Somewhere deep down in my heart tells me that my fears will come true - there had been a look on both of my parent's faces when I had gone to say goodbye. It told me that i would never see them again. 

A week later and the news from home is not good. My mother has fallen ill and my father has taken a turn for the worse with no hope of recovery. I am petrified. I cannot concentrate on anything even though there are so many interesting activities going on. I can't even concentrate on spending time Victoria I had not seen for almost an entire. Victoria and Manon are beside me often trying to cheer me up. Nothing works .It is Rowan's steady company that keeps me sane all through the long week. He sits with me and doesn't try to console me with kind words. He just listens. He is constant. He understands what it is to fear for a parents life and therefore knows that there are no words to make it better. A couple of times he just holds me when I have been pacing in fear. It is only in his arms that I am calm.

On Christmas Eve, as I am dressing for dinner, I tell Yrene that I think that no news is good news. But then a servant enters the room adn hands me a letter. It is from my grandmother and I know what it contains. Yrene takes one look at my face and immediately leaves the room. 

𝒟𝑒𝒶𝓇 𝒜𝑒𝓁𝒾𝓃, 𝑀𝓎 𝒹𝑒𝒶𝓇 𝒢𝓇𝒶𝓃𝒹𝒹𝒶𝓊𝑔𝒽𝓉𝑒𝓇, 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝓂𝓊𝓈𝓉 𝓅𝓇𝑒𝓅𝒶𝓇𝑒 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇𝓈𝑒𝓁𝒻 𝒻𝑜𝓇 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒸𝑜𝓃𝓉𝑒𝓃𝓉 𝑜𝒻 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓈 𝓁𝑒𝓉𝓉𝑒𝓇.<𝒷𝓇 /> 𝐼𝓉 𝒾𝓈 𝒽𝒶𝓇𝒹 𝓉𝑜 𝓉𝑒𝓁𝓁 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓈 𝓃𝑒𝓌𝓈. 𝐼 𝒶𝓂 𝒻𝒾𝑔𝒽𝓉𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓊𝓇𝑔𝑒 𝓉𝑜 𝒿𝓊𝓈𝓉 𝓈𝒾𝓉 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝓌𝑒𝑒𝓅.<𝒷𝓇 /> 𝒴𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝓂𝑜𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓇 𝑔𝒶𝓋𝑒 𝒷𝒾𝓇𝓉𝒽 𝓉𝑜 𝒶 𝒷𝑒𝒶𝓊𝓉𝒾𝒻𝓊𝓁 𝒷𝒶𝒷𝓎 𝑔𝒾𝓇𝓁 𝓌𝒽𝒾𝒸𝒽 𝓈𝒽𝑒 𝓃𝒶𝓂𝑒𝒹 𝐸𝓈𝓂𝑒𝓇𝒶𝓁𝒹𝒶.<𝒷𝓇 /> 𝒪𝓃𝑒 𝒽𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝒶𝒻𝓉𝑒𝓇 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝓃𝑒𝓌 𝓈𝒾𝓈𝓉𝑒𝓇'𝓈 𝒷𝒾𝓇𝓉𝒽 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇.𝓂𝑜𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓇 𝓅𝒶𝓈𝓈𝑒𝒹.𝑜𝓃 . 𝒴𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝒻𝒶𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓇 𝒹𝒾𝑒𝒹 𝓈𝑜𝑜𝓃 a𝒻𝑒𝓉𝓇. 𝒴𝑜𝓊 𝒶𝓇𝑒 𝓃𝑜𝓌 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒟𝓊𝒸𝒽𝑒𝓈𝓈 𝑜𝒻 𝒟𝑒𝓇𝒷𝓎𝓈𝒽𝒾𝓇𝑒. 𝐼 𝒶𝓂 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝑔𝓊𝒶𝓇𝒹𝒾𝒶𝓃 𝒶nd 𝒶𝒹𝓋𝒾𝓈𝑜𝓇 𝓊𝓃𝓉𝒾𝓁 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝟣𝟪𝓉𝒽 𝒷𝒾𝓇𝓉𝒽𝒹𝒶𝓎. 𝐼'𝓂 𝓈𝑜 𝓋𝑒𝓇𝓎 𝓈𝑜𝓇𝓇𝓎. 𝒫𝓁𝑒𝒶𝓈𝑒 𝒸𝑜𝓂𝑒 𝒽𝑜𝓂𝑒 𝒶𝓈 𝓈𝑜𝑜𝓃 𝒶𝓈 𝓅𝑜𝓈𝓈𝒾𝒷𝓁𝑒<𝒷𝓇 /> 𝐿𝑜𝓋𝑒<𝒷𝓇 /> 𝒜𝓃𝒹𝓇𝑜𝓂𝑒𝒹𝒶  
I cannot speak. I cannot think. I cannot breathe. My legs give out and I fall to the floor weeping uncontrollably. Why? I want to scream. Why have my parents been ripped from me? How could our loving God take my parents , who had so much more to do on this earth? .  
I sit.  
I weep.  
I weep.  
Rowan slips into the room. I know it is him from the way he enters and suddenly understand why Yrene left the room. She - that incredible woman- knew that he was the one person who could get sense out of my in this state. I look up,tears running down my cheeks and offer him my grandmother's letter. He sits down next to me and puts an arm round me. I lean into him, desperate for comfort and bury my head in his shirt. We stay like that for a very long time as I soak him with tears and snot. 

That night I cannot sleep. I lie in my bed still crying, still trying to process everything. Suddenly, I am picked up and carried into another room, another bed.  
Rowan. He says nothing but I know that he is there . Lying beside him, I feel a sense of peace ; of being home; of being safe; of being not alone. 

I have one thought in the midst of my grief- a flash of happiness and a question- Is this love?


	6. Devestated

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Could any thing worse happen to Aelin?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to start going back and seriously edit this work
> 
> In the meantime thank for reading and sorry if I fail at typing again

Every night after that I spend in Rowan's bed even when we return home. Most nights I cannot stop crying but he is there sometimes taking my hand sometimes just lieing beside me doing nothing but beiing silent and steadfast company. 

Yrene is incredibly suspicous of this and thinks that we doing thngs pther than just sleeping.When she tells me this I am shickrd. Firstly I dn't have any feeings (besides freindship) for the prince and secondly I am grieving foor my paarents. 

The night of my parents finreal is the worst.I had spent alot of the day silent and almost emotionless , speaking only when spoken to. I gave an Euogy at the servixe. I aamm.brave and do not cry once. I sit with bay Esmeralda in her nursery. Yet that night I cry with abandon. Rowan holds.me.to him the whole night untii I stop sobbing . I fall asleep in bhis arms. 

I begin to adjust to this new life. Gone is the rigid structure of the day. I still have lessons but I am freer in the afternoons. I watch Rowan sketch, I watch Yrene andd Chaol flirt, I read, I sew,I talk. But none of this brings me joy. I feel sometimes ike I will never smile again. 

When I am with Rowan there times when I feel almoaat human. Like I am not in an abys of pain and tears. They are the moments I live for. . These are the times which slowly coax me out of thiss timeof sorow. 

But then this building of happiness is shattered by a letter. A letter from Rowan's father. His mother is dead and he needs to return home. We are both devestated. I tel him.that withouthim at my side I won't be happy. 

He tells Chao the news but is told that if he is returning he will noy come with him. He si stayimg with the woman he loves. 

Rowan leaves.almosy exactly a yer.after he arrived. I am distraugth. He promises to write. I do the samee. 

I become likee a ghost - pale, withdrawn and weeping. I have ost my source of hapiness. 

Days without him turn into weeks. Weeks turn into months. And I come to realise thaat mabye this feeling is love. That I am love sick.


	7. Letters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aelin and Rowan have been sperated. Can Aelin rebuild her shattered life without him?

Am I in love? The question haunts me every waking moment.

IEvery day I think of him. His handsome face . His voice. The way he had pritected me and soothed me. 

There are nights whrn I cannot sleep but instead cry for my parents, my little baby sister, my self trapped alon and scared. An orphan trying to find some way to carry on. On these noghts all I want is for him to be beside me and just hold me. Wipe away my tears. 

My grandmother begins to teach me how to run an estate and everything I need to know in my role as a.Duchess. It distracts me from the pain of losing my parents and Rowan .

I visit my sister in her nursey as often as possible. She is a charming child and she brings me comfort. 

 

The first letter arives 3 monyhs after Rowan's departure. It breif but I treasure it. I reply. 

 

As we begin to send more and more letters they becolme love letters. Neither acknowledge thsi it just happens . 

The letter I come to read the most is one that arrives not long before Christmas. he anniversary of my parents deaths. Esmerelda's birthday. He sends gifts for me and her and letters for mee and Chaol.

My dear Aelin 

I hope that this letter reaches you before Christmas so that I can gve you some comfort.When the sadness and greif washes over yoou on the anniversary just imagijne that I am beside you . That I am holdi you. Be sothed by the thought that we will see each other soon. 

Yes, I have a proposal for you. My father may not survive much longer so soon I wil be king. I want you by my side here in Bravaria. My suggestion is that once yo are 18 you leave your asister at a church orphanage for her to be brought up there. Then you an your grandmother should come over to Brabaria and we can be together .

Please.consider this for I long to see you

 

Rowan

 

When I show my grandmother the letter she agrees to the plan. 

On Christmas eve I am a mess and annot stopncrying. Manon stays with me and trys to comfort me. While we re sitting together I invite her to join me in Bravaria as a companion. She accepys. 

The day does imprive - that evening Chaol proposes to Yrene and she accepts. They agree that they wil marry as soon as we retarn to Bravaria. 

I am comforted by remembering Rowan's words and know deep down in my heart that I love him and he loves me


	8. Together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aelin arrives  
> Love is all around

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here I am writing again after 6 months!!  
> School has been crazy since March. 
> 
> Hopefully I should be able to edit previous chapters as well.
> 
> Thank you to everyone who has read this and is back.

My 18th birthday arrives. As does the 18th birthday of Victoria . She become the queen . I give up my sister and say goodbye to England.

As we sail away, I cannot even look at the coast. My heart is so full of pain and happiness. I was leaving my home. My sister. My friends. Everything I had ever known. And yet deep down I was glad to be leaving. The pain of the past year threatened to drown me the longer I spent in the house I had spent my whole life in. I was going to my mother’s homeland and the home of my love. 

We reached the shores a month later. what followed was a week long ride through the nations and then through Bavaria until we reached the capital. I had never been so grateful to see a building in my whole life. Yrene was shown in through the servants entrance and me, my grandmother and Chaol were shown into the palace. 

It was the grandest place I'd every been and I had been in many London palace's throughout my time being friends with Victoria. But any awe was suddenly replaced with the realization that Rowan was so, so close to me. That I was in his home and with his family at last. The servant that had shown us in asks me whether I want to see the King, the prince and the princess before I change. Looking down at my slightly crumpled, dusty dress and decided that I would change. 

My rooms were grand consisting of 3 interconnected rooms - a small area with comfortable chairs around a fire place, a beautiful bedchamber with a comfortable bed and a small dressing room where Yrene was unpacking my dresses. She heard me come in and smiled. 'So, we are here- you are with your love and I can marry mine' She says smiling. 'We must find you a dress that will impress him' I agreed but I knew that he would find me beautiful no matter what i wore- It was his father I had to impress. Remembering the reason Rowan had had to leave me I speak ' It must be a dark dress- the queen is not long dead'

We decide on a simple yet pretty mid blue dress with dark blue embroidery that I had had made not long before our departure. It was an exact copy of a dress my mother had worn so many times throughout my childhood. As I finish dressing there is a knock at the main door to my rooms. A knock I knew so well. Rowan's knock. 

Sharing a glance that what was full of apprehension and excitement, Yrene hurries to the door and opens it. It is him. It is so long since I saw him but I never once forgot his handsome face and the way he smiled when he said name. The memory that I treasured the most was the memory of our first meeting - the amusement in his eyes as I tripped and his smile as I asked him his name. 

For a while we just stand there, just drinking in the site of one another. Then he starts towards and takes me in his arms. I bury my face in his neck and cry for the first time since leaving England over a month before. 

'Aelin, Fairy, My love' he chokes out. Still trying to process everything, I suddenly fix on what he said - my love. 'Yo-You love me' I gasp out it made me incredibly happy to here those words- words I had been trying to say myself for so long. He pulls back and stands back - both of his hands in mine. 'Aelin, I love you so much, every moment I have spent apart has been torture' I am overwhelmed and stand on my tiptoes and bring my face close to his. 'I love you too' I whisper tenderly

And then he brings his lips to mine and I am in heaven. 

We are together.


End file.
